[Deeply Rooted] God Is for UsSampel

God Is with Us

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General declared that there was a loneliness epidemic in the United States. Researchers, doctors, and mental health experts across the States contributed to the findings in the Surgeon General’s national advisory. They all pointed to the negative effects of loneliness and isolation, such as the decline of physical health and increased feelings of anxiety and depression. We were not meant to be alone.

Suffering can be deeply isolating. Trials can make us feel like we’re all alone in the world. When we can’t articulate our grief or fully express our pain, we can believe no one in the world can truly understand what we’re going through. This loneliness only adds to our suffering and burden on top of burden.

This is why we need to remember our second anchor of truth in times of struggle: God is with us. Even when we feel the most alone in the world, God is there. He is with us in all our troubles. Again, God is with us. As Christians, we know this in a very particular way because of Jesus. One of Jesus’s names is Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” Through Christ, God has drawn close to us, and because of Christ’s death and resurrection, we can know God’s presence in an awesome way.

We may not be able to see or feel God’s physical presence, but we can look to His word to find trustworthy assurances of His nearness and His love. Verses like Joshua 1:9 tell us that He is with us wherever we go. And verses like Isaiah 41:10 promise us that will God strengthen us and help us.

In times of trouble, we can also lean into the gift of the Christian community. In community, we can find God’s caring presence through the loving support of other Christians. It’s such a gift to be able to reach out to a brother or sister in Christ who can pray for us and encourage us. Their faith can bolster our own and help us to remember God’s good character when our circumstances make it hard to believe.

No matter how deep in darkness we feel, we are not alone. God is with us.

Thought of the Day: Going through trials and suffering can be very lonely, but that doesn’t mean that I am alone. God promises to be with me always, and I believe that He is faithful to His Word. Today, I will trust that He is with me.